Thank you to Goodreads and Simon and Schuster for providing me with a copy of this novel to review.

Zoe, Kate, and Jack are the three points of a loveThank you to Goodreads and Simon and Schuster for providing me with a copy of this novel to review.

Zoe, Kate, and Jack are the three points of a love triangle. They are elite cyclists vying for their spot to win gold at the London Olympics. Jack and Zoe were a couple once upon a time, now it's Jack and Kate. No matter how the romantic entanglements play out, all three manage to remain friends. Complicating the quest for gold is Jack and Kate's young daughter Sophie who is sick with life threatening cancer. Kate has trouble focusing on her quest when her daughter may be close to dying. Her window to compete is shrinking and she has made many sacrifices in order to put Sophie first. She has one last chance to make her Olympic dreams come true but first she will have to defeat her friend and rival Zoe. Where Kate is restrained and proper Zoe is a tabloid darling. Zoe doesn't play by anyone's rules and when she races, she puts it all on the line because she has nothing to lose. A rule change means it will all come down to one last race between Kate and Zoe to see who gets the spot for the Olympics. Zoe will have to conquer her inner demons and Kate will have to set Sophie aside if either is to have a chance to win gold.

The timing of this book couldn't have been more perfect. The Olympics are set to begin in a few short weeks and it was if the author decided to commemorate the event by crafting a novel. Although The timing was fortuitous the story was lacking. I really had to force myself through most of it. It was only when the relationship between Jack, Kate ,and Zoe was more fully explained that I found myself more interested. The book was formulaic in order to derive the most emotional response. Of course it would work out that Sophie would be at her sickest when Kate had to focus on her last competition. I really have to agree with the Entertainment Weekly review that came out on Friday giving it a C. The characters were one dimensional and I found that I didn't really care who won as long as the book was over. I hate to be so negative, especially about a book I was given. I have had Little Bee on my to be read pile forever. Hopefully I will be able to connect with that one more. ...more

Thank you to Goodreads and Random House for providing me with a review copy of this novel.

I have enjoyed the Lisa See novels I have read so far whichThank you to Goodreads and Random House for providing me with a review copy of this novel.

I have enjoyed the Lisa See novels I have read so far which include Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and of course Shanghai Girls. Her writing is like Amy Tan's and it wasn't very surprising to see that Lisa references their friendship in the back of the Dreams of Joy novel. Like Amy Tan, Lisa See weaves tales about Chinese mothers and daughters and how they can break each others hearts.

Dreams of Joy picks up right where Shanghai Girls left off. Joy, the de facto daughter of Pearl and the biological daughter of Pearl's sister May has run off the communist China in order to find her biological father Z.G. Spurning Joy on is the guilt she feels about the part she played in the suicide of the man who she believed was her father, Sam. Pearl is in hot pursuit and determined to save Joy from her inner demons but travel in communist Chins is difficult to near impossible. Joy decides to join a farming commune in order to help build new China but she soon learns that the communist regime is not all it's touted to be. Still she stays because she feels she deserves to be punished for her part in Sam's death. It is only when she has her own daughter that she finally gets up the courage to attempt a daring escape.

The story is told from the alternating perspectives of Pearl the mother and Joy the daughter. I found Pearl's patience to be rather astounding. Joy makes bad choice after bad choice and still Pearl does everything she can to help her. I understand her mother's love but it did not seem realistic that she did not try to discourage Joy's choices. Her responses to Joy's actions were much more westernized than Chinese.

The end of the book was where I felt the most sympathy for Joy. Up until that point I had the feeling that she got what she deserved for being so naive and foolish. What Joy had to endure at the end was a punishment that no human being should have to endure. The Hell on earth that Lisa See describes as the family makes their escape is horrifying. I knew communist China was bad but some of the things that were described made me physically nauseous. I had to put the book down at least twice because I was getting sick. It was if the people of China had lost any semblance of humanity.

Despite some unpleasant moments I enjoyed the sequel to Shanghai Girls very much. I am glad Lisa See decided to revisit the characters and give them them further development and a happy ending. I look forward to reading her other books. ...more

I received this book for free from the Goodreads First Reads program. Thank you!

I was lukewarm on this. There were many times I put it down and just dI received this book for free from the Goodreads First Reads program. Thank you!

I was lukewarm on this. There were many times I put it down and just didn't have the desire to pick it up again. The author and I are about the same age and as I was growing up safely in America with all of the luxuries and privileges it has to offer, the author known as Bobo was growing up in a war torn part of Africa where the essentials for life were slim to none. I saw that this was Entertainment Weekly's Nonfiction book of the year and I always had it on the back burner of my TBR pile. I won a copy in anticipation of the author's new book revisiting her childhood being published and so I finally decided to read it. I love memoirs and reading about Africa. Make that the Africa as portrayed in the No. 1 ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. The Rhodesia that the author grew up in bore little resemblance to the sweet Botswana as portrayed in my favorite series. There were many times when I was left wondering what in the hell Bobo's parents were thinking. They did not out right abuse the children so much as neglect them. One incident of parental neglect had deadly consequences for their daughter Olivia. Bobo had a very tough childhood but certainly not the worst that I ever read. According to her she still misses Africa to this day despite the sanity it robbed her mother of and the lives it stole of her siblings. ...more

Thank you to Goodreads and Pantheon for providing me with a copy of this book to review.

I love the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. Every springThank you to Goodreads and Pantheon for providing me with a copy of this book to review.

I love the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. Every spring I highly anticipate the new book in that series. While I love that series I just kind of really like the Sunday Philosophy Club, at least enough to keep reading each new entry. In this go around we find Isabel assisting a fellow visiting philosopher with investigating her family tree. As is often the case there is a tricky moral dilemma associated with this case and Isabel is left debating whether she did the correct thing. There are also some philosophical explorations of God and the meaning of living a spiritual life. Cat is as dismal and mean spirited as ever. I have lost patience with her and honestly can't see why Isabel keeps bothering with her. On the positive side Brother Fox has a son and a significant development is made in Isabel's personal life. You can count this in as another sweet and heart warming addition to the series....more

Thank you to Goodreads and Harper for providing me with a review copy of this novel.

I am a huge fan of this series and have read all of the books publThank you to Goodreads and Harper for providing me with a review copy of this novel.

I am a huge fan of this series and have read all of the books published to date thanks to Book Girl Jen's Mad for Maisie reading challenge last year. In this outing we see that WWII looms ever closer on the horizon and we get an inkling as to what it will mean to the beloved characters in this series. When a man from Maisie's youth dies under somewhat mysterious circumstances she is called on to investigate the death by her father's friends. As Maisie has known the man personally she feels a particular responsibility to discover the truth. The case soon becomes complicated and Maisie learns that there is a lot more at stake than the death of just one man.

Although I love the mystery aspect of each story I often find myself frustrated with Maisie's actions in her personal life. I was just getting over the shabby way she treated her former suitor Dr. Andrew, who even though she gave him the brush off, doesn't seem mind using him whenever she has a need of his medical expertise. Now she is reverting back to the same pattern with her new love James. I wanted to throw the book when she was contemplating encouraging him to move to Canada and take up farming without her. When Maisie's assistant is almost killed, she seems to take offense when James shows concern for her safety. The hinted at parting of James and Maisie at the end of the book did not leave me hopeful for their future.

I will keep reading the series because I love the world and characters Winspear has created. I just wish that there could be a novel where Maisie could find a little peace happiness in her love life but I see that it is not to be. With the onset of another war the future looks more bleak than ever for Winspear's characters. It will be interesting to see where Maisie's planned travels will take her in the next novel....more